LiPSonline

LiPSonline is a website
which shares ideas and resources with teachers who teach listening, speaking, and
pronunciation to non-native English speakers, especially online. It has many
useful links for teachers and students, and most of the resources are related
to online teaching, such as talking groups online, recording for speaking, and
pronunciation club. There are three categories right now that separate links by
their functions: as listening, pronunciation information and exercises, and online
audio recording and listening.

The main purpose of LiPSonline
is to improve students' speaking and listening skills through online
education. The advantage is that students and teachers can use the resources
anytime and anywhere, but the disadvantage is that teachers and students have
to use computers with microphones to practice or participate in group
discussion.

LiPSonline is easy to use
and follow because the three categories on the web site separate links by their
functions and each part is very brief and concise. The only drawback
is that no instruction explains how to use the recommended links mentioned on
the webpage. Also, it is not clear how often the webpage gets updated, per
month, per year, or randomly. If you don’t want to add too many links to your favorite
folder, you can save this one for teaching listening and pronunciation online. Or
it may be a good example for teachers, while we can have space for
our own teaching experiences. For the links which are recommended on the
webpage here, I would like to explain one of them: http://www.voxopop.com/

“It
is used by educators all over the world, and Voxopop talkgroups are a fun,
engaging and easy-to-use way to help students develop their speaking skills.
They're a bit like message boards, but use voice
rather than text and a have a specialized user interface. No longer confined to
a physical classroom, teachers and students of oral skills can interact from
home, or even from opposite sides of the planet!”

If there is a time or distance gap
between you and your students, or students’ schedules are flexible, this
talking group is very good. It is also good for American Language Program (ALP) students. The ALP
office could use this talking group to improve students’ life skills before their
arrival in the U. S. It is a good way to prepare for life abroad and save money
and time for students.